Courses for Spring 2015

EAST

Pop, Political and Patrician: Culture in Japan and the Koreas

This course introduces students to the modern cultures of Japan and Korea through an examination of events, artifacts, and cultural practices. The over-arching goal of the class is two-fold: to create an alternative narrative to the dominant Orientalized vision of East Asian culture and to deepen our knowledge of the overlapping cultural histories of Japan and Korea. With a broad understanding of culture as a general process of artistic and intellectual development, as a body of material artifacts, and as a social practice of ordinary life, we shall focus our attention on the implications of studying culture in relation to popular media and political activism in particular. Topics covered will include: colonial fiction, the re-creation of tradition, art and atrocity, the proletarian arts, postwar children's culture, the globalization of popular music, myth in the DPRK, shoji print culture, and East Asian activism.

Returnees in China's Modernization

This course examines the impact on contemporary China of returnees, people who having left China to study abroad have now returned home and become reintegrated into society. Focusing on a series of in-depth studies of returnees who have carved out professional identities in the commercial world, the state, and civil society. The returnee experience will be examined from 2 angles: the manner by which contemporary returnees negotiate Chinese tradition and Western learning, and the differences between this cohort's experience and that of previous generations of returnees in China’s now century and a half long period of modernization.

Transnational Koreas: Gender, Family, and Sexuality

From an economic basket case in 1963 to a successful producer of global cultural products such as Samsung phones and the “Korean Wave,” South Korea has become the envy of many developing nations. What are the gender and sexual politics that undergird this neoliberal success story? Utilizing the analytical lens of “gender,” “sexuality,” and “family,” this course will confront and interrogate the hypermasculine Korean state and its hetero-gendering of Korean citizenship by examining issues ranging from the cosmetic surgery boom for women and military conscription for men to the ongoing controversy around "comfort women" (military sex slaves for the Japanese imperial army).

Chinese Women, Gender and Feminism from Historical and Transnational Perspectives

This seminar course is designed to critically re-evaluate (re)presentations of Chinese women, gender, and feminism in historical, literary, and academic discourses. It examines a diverse body of texts produced through different historical periods and in different geopolitical locations. It emphasizes gender as both a historical construct(s) among competing discourses and as a material process of individual embodiment and disembodiment. The goal of the course is to help advanced students understand Chinese history from a distinctly gendered perspective, to recognize women's roles in history and writing, and to develop a reflective, cross-cultural approach to gender, politics, and the self.

Market Economy, Popular Culture, and Mass Media in Contemporary China

Course focuses on mainland Chinese cultural and media production since the mid 1980's, when China began transforming itself culturally and economically into a capitalist society with socialist characteristics. Traditional values, socialist legacy, commercial forces, and globalization have all played significant roles in the ongoing transformation. The goal of the course is to examine the complex interactions among diverse historical forces in a rapidly changing China. Course taught in Mandarin Chinese.

Queer Japan: Culture, History and Sexuality

This seminar investigates cultural practices enacted by Japanese gays and lesbians, or otherwise related to same-sex attraction. How have sexual identities traditionally been constructed in Japan, and how has the modern period transformed them? How has same-sex sexuality become figured in the Japanese art, literature and popular culture of the 20th century; and how have the forces of a global LGBT culture interacted with the specific experiences of a same-sex community in Japan? This class explores questions about queer history, writing and cultural practice by looking at particular moments in the Japanese past and present.

Courses of Interest to Concentrators

East Asian Studies is a highly interdisciplinary concentration. The following courses in other departments can be taken for concentration credit. Please check the listing of the appropriate department for the time and location of each course.

Religious Studies
RELS 1410 Early Daoist Philosophy: Zhuangzi

EAST XLIST 0

CHIN

Basic Chinese

A year-long introduction to Standard Chinese (Mandarin). Speaking, reading, writing, and grammar. Five classroom meetings weekly. This is the second half of a year-long course. Students must have taken CHIN 0100 to receive credit for this course. The final grade for this course will become the final grade for CHIN 0100. If CHIN 0100 was taken for credit then this course must be taken for credit; if taken as an audit, this course must also be taken as an audit. Exceptions to this policy must be approved by both the academic department and the Committee on Academic Standing.

Intermediate Chinese

An intermediate course in Standard Chinese designed to further communicative competence and to develop reading and writing skills. Five classroom meetings weekly. Prerequisite: CHIN 0300 or permission of instructor.

Advanced Modern Chinese I

An advanced course designed to enable students to read authentic materials. Students enhance their listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills; improve their narrative and descriptive abilities; and learn to express abstract ideas both orally and in writing. Five classroom meetings weekly. Prerequisite: CHIN 0500 or permission of instructor.

Advanced Modern Chinese II

Two Sides of the Coin: Advanced Chinese Conversation

Many of us know about the trolley scenario- would you kill one to save five? What do you think about organ trade- is it immoral for wealthy people to buy organs from the poor in order to save their lives or those of their loved ones? Who are really responsible for the atrocious organ harvesting in China? What is your stance on the Affirmative Action? Did you know China has an affirmative action as well? The goal of this course is to develop students’ communication skills in Chinese, with an emphasis on their listening and speaking skills, through in-depth discussions on controversial issues and moral dilemmas. Class materials will cover a broad range of topics and will not be limited to those unique to China. The majority of primary sources will be in Chinese. Prerequisite is CHIN0800 or equivalent.

JAPN

Basic Japanese

Introduction to Japanese language. Emphasizes the attainment of good spoken control of Japanese and develops a foundation of literacy. This is the second half of a year-long course. Students must have taken JAPN 0100 to receive credit for this course. The final grade for this course will become the final grade for JAPN 0100. If JAPN 0100 was taken for credit then this course must be taken for credit; if taken as an audit, this course must also be taken as an audit. Exceptions to this policy must be approved by both the academic department and the Committee on Academic Standing. The East Asian Studies department wishes to provide language instruction to all interested students. If you are unable to register for this course due to enrollment limits but are dedicated to learning Japanese, please contact the instructor via email.

Advanced Beginning Japanese

Designed for those who have had high-school Japanese or other Japanese language experience. An opportunity to organize previous knowledge of Japanese and develop a firm basis of spoken and written Japanese. Prerequisite: Reading and writing knowledge of Hiragana, Katakana and some Kanji. Placement test required. This is the second half of a year-long course. Students must have taken JAPN 0150 to receive credit for this course. The final grade for this course will become the final grade for JAPN 0150. If JAPN 0150 was taken for credit then this course must be taken for credit; if taken as an audit, this course must also be taken as an audit. Exceptions to this policy must be approved by both the academic department and the Committee on Academic Standing. The East Asian Studies department wishes to provide language instruction to all interested students. If you are unable to register for this course due to enrollment limits but are dedicated to learning Japanese, please contact the instructor via email.

Advanced Japanese II

Japanese Linguistics: Communication and Understanding Utterances

Introduces a linguistic analysis of Japanese language to attain an overview of structure and a foundation for understanding how grammar relates to various modes of communication. Topics include discourse analysis, pragmatics, communicative intention, communication strategies, and intercultural communication gaps. Linguistic data is drawn from films and fiction. Prerequisite: basic knowledge of Japanese grammar, vocabulary, and linguistics. Enrollment limited to 20. WRIT

KREA

Korean

Begins with an introduction to the Korean writing system (Hangul) and focuses on building communicative competence in modern Korean in the four language modalities (listening, speaking, reading, writing). Provides a foundation for later work in spoken and written Korean. Six classroom hours per week. Enrollment limited to 18. This is the second half of a year-long course. Students must have taken KREA 0100 to receive credit for this course. The final grade for this course will become the final grade for KREA 0100. If KREA 0100 was taken for credit then this course must be taken for credit; if taken as an audit, this course must also be taken as an audit. Exceptions to this policy must be approved by both the academic department and the Committee on Academic Standing.